DAWN OF GRACE
by Hanslie
Summary: What did prophet Nathan feel when God spoke to him about David's greatest sin? What did King David feel and how did he react? No reviews about rapture pls. If you are close minded, don't read. This is Bible based story. Pls review.


Disclaimer: I don't own the Bible or any of its characters.

Note: I am not, by all means, rewriting or fabricating the Word of God, the Bible or the story of David. Then why am I writing this? The reason was very simple, I love stories, when I read the Bible, I've always wanted to read it in such a way that I could feel what the characters were feeling. But, the Bible, wasn't written in such a way, many were cut off short, many were one-sided and many were just written to just inform us. I've known many authors who wrote the detailed story of the life of the characters in the Bible and some of them wrote it in such a way that would help us, readers, to understand more about God and the Bible characters themselves. Ironically, I am such a reader, I want to understand, I want to feel and I want to explore and expound more. So, if I am offending you by writing such a story, by all means, you have the right not to read it.

Is our God so close minded that He wouldn't allow us to empathize with the characters in the Bible, try to understand them and try to imagine: "why did he feel that way?" "Why didn't he punish his son?" Is it so wrong to imagine and try to fill in the blanks where the story didn't finish? If He is that kind of god, then, He wouldn't be my Lord and Savior. God gave us a mind to think, to feel, to imagine, to empathize and to cry with the characters written in the Bible and other books. By feeling what the characters were feeling made me understood them more, it made me think that, like us, they were humans and in terrible need of God's grace. I have tried my best to stay faithful to the real Bible story of King David, but, as I've said, in this case, many were left unsaid and undetailed. It took me 2 weeks of my free time to go into the mind of these characters and rereading the story in the Bible over and over again. I have added a lot of **possibilities** in regards to what may David, prophet Nathan and Bathsheba might have felt during that time. It is just possibilities and didn't our God gave us minds to discern? This is strictly for entertainment, please don't literally read it as such that it had **actually happened, no, it isn't meant to be like that. But it is meant for the readers to understand the life of king David more.** May God give us the discernment to read wisely.

The idea to write came when I wrote the fanfic of Gone With The Wind, and it came upon me, that if I could write such story that I actually went into the characters' mind and felt what they felt, why couldn't I do that with the bible characters? It can help many people too

DAWN OF GRACE

It was night time, prophet Nathan was outside his little shack of a home, he just ate his dinner. He sat on the little, wooden stool he placed there just for the purpose, he could feel the wind blowing to his face as he gazed up to the sky, admiring the beautiful creations of Yahweh. His face was glowing from mere admiration, he looked young and vigorous, though he was already a middle aged man, he looked way younger than anyone near his age, even the king himself. His almond shaped eyes were still clear, his nose as pointed as an eagle's beak could smell anything from a distance, his lips were covered with light brown bristles, which he trimmed nearly every week, and the crown of his head was covered with light brown locks that never had a streak of white in them. His mouth wrinkled to the side as he smiled, Yahweh was good to him, more than he deserves, his countenance was the sole evidence of Yahweh's goodness in his life.

 _Nathan!_

Prophet Nathan was able to recognized the still, small voice of Yahweh. It had been long enough, since He last spoke to him. The voice was the same, but this time, it was urgent, and dare he name it, a bit furious.

"Speak, Lord, Your servant is listening."

 _Your king has sinned against Me and I Am going to bring calamity to him and his household for he has despised Me for doing evil in my sight!_

Fear gripped the heart of the prophet, his face went pale and his middle aged face that had no lines, wrinkled with alarm. What could the king have done that would make Yahweh get this furious? His mind raced from one scenario to another but the voice continued...

 _Go to the king and tell this tale to him:..._

The prophet was holding his breath, he couldn't move, his mind raced, he couldn't in his wildest dream, thought of anything the king could have done that would get Yahweh this angry. The king had been very faithful to Yahweh, he had been blameless and Yahweh even mentioned that he was a man after His own Heart, a great honor to bestow to someone like the king. No! Could something he had warned the king, something he feared, the unspeakable might have happened?

 _Tell the king this: "_ _This is what the_ _Lord_ _, the God of Israel, says:…_

The face of the prophet went pale as each word registered to his brain. He had often warned the king of his love for women, he had warned him that this would eventually lead to sin, but the king adamantly refused to listen, he insisted that polygamy was allowed in his kingdom, for peace treaty. His body began to tremble and chill went down his spine as the weight of each word Yahweh spoke held extreme anger and destruction. He tore his robe and wept sorrowfully.

 _I have taken away his sin, but the son born to him will die, for he has shown utter contempt for My Word!_

The prophet continued to weep, for this was the sorrow he took when he had taken the responsibility of being Yahweh's spokesman. He was burdened with complete sorrow as he laid on the ground, grief stricken. Tears run down his now wrinkled and mourned face. How could the king done such a wicked thing? Why? He was a righteous man, what could have gone wrong? **The prophet knew that it was easy for a righteous man to easily become a wicked man, for there was a very thin line between the two if went unchecked. The battle between good and evil runs through the heart of every man, for none was exempted from the power of sin. Human by itself was prone to sin.**

Power. There could be no other, but his power as king had made him do this wickedness. The king should have known better, Yahweh would never allow such wickedness to pass Him by. The prophet moaned with extreme grief, his heart was tight with sorrowed burden for his king, for the consequences of his evil acts would have a sinister effect to the royal family. **Sin, after all, didn't only affect the one who made it, it would also affect the people of the one who have made it, for that was the consequence of sin.** He was not anticipating to know what would happen to the royal family, but he was sure, it wouldn't be pleasant, no consequence from sin ever was, much less, consequences for this kind of sin, murder and covetousness. He cried for his king and he cried for the future of the royal line.

"Oh Yahweh, oh my king!"

He mourned and cried sorrowfully all evening until dawn, then he stood up. He needed to do what Yahweh commanded him to do, it won't be easy, he prayed that Yahweh would give him the courage to speak the truth to the king and he prayed that the king would repent, **for when a person was confronted with sin, had either of two reactions, anger or repentance,** and he prayed for the latter. His job, after all, wasn't easy, Ahimelech was killed after he spoke valiantly to king Saul. If king David would kill him, so be it, though Yahweh assured him that He had taken away the king's sin, he couldn't be sure how the king would react to the story He had instructed him to tell the king. King Saul was a blameless and righteous man before he became king, but he had killed the priests of Yahweh when he was king. May Yahweh help him do what He had appointed him to do.

IIIII

King David stood outside the door of his music room, paralyzed with indecisiveness. He couldn't go inside since that night. He gritted his teeth together, his heart was heavy, it was nearly a year since he went inside. What was wrong with him? He clenched his fists, he was not happy and he felt so lifeless and so empty inside him.

 _In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears._

He shook his head, for nearly a year, his mind kept remembering on and off the psalms he wrote, his heart was heavy and in pain. What was wrong with him? He was longing for something he couldn't point out. He finally had her as his wife, a beautiful woman fit to be his queen and the child born to him was adorable and healthy. He stepped back, sighed and began walking back to his courtroom, his hands behind his back. He still had sleepless nights and he had nightmares recently, he feared that everything seemed to have gone exactly as he had wished for, but he wondered, did Yahweh know? Why was Yahweh so silent? He stopped when he saw a mirror beside him, he turned and studied his face. Many fine lines wrinkled his face since that night, he still had dark circles under his eyes and white hairs began to appear on the crown of his head and his beard. He had aged. Did Yahweh let him off this time? Why was He so silent? He thought when he had her, he would be the happiest man alive, but here he was, an aged, unhappy man. What was wrong with him? King David should have known better than this, **anything attained by sin, wouldn't make anyone happy in the long run.** Much less, **disobedience to the word of God would weigh a man down.**

King David sat down on his throne with a sigh, when one of his attendant went near him and said,

"My Lord, prophet Nathan demands your presence."

"Bring him to my presence then."

When the prophet strode to his throne, the king was beyond joy, this prophet was his friend and he missed him. He couldn't wait for him to come near him, the king stood and went to him with open arms. The king embraced the prophet excitedly and each of them kissed the other's cheeks in greeting.

The prophet looked squarely at the king's face. What he saw bespoke what he had expected, for he had seen the very core of the king's secret and unhappy countenance, the king had aged tremendously, **for unconfessed sin always took a toll of one's body and health.**

"I need your advise about something, my lord." The prophet said nonchalantly.

"Anything, my friend, how may I help you?" the king asked too eagerly, as he went back to sit on his throne. He signaled to one of his attendant to bring a stool for the prophet.

"I prefer to stand, my Lord."

"Very well."

"There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.

"Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him."

Anger washed over the whole being of the king, he shot up from his throne and shouted, all the people around the courtroom heard him, including his advisors and attendants, "As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity. Where is he? I will personally punish him!"

Abruptly, the prophet lifted his hand and pointed up to him while he stood in front of the throne, shocked registered on the king's face. The prophet said in a clear and even voice, without fear:

"You are the man!"

Paralyzed with extreme shock, realization dawned on the king. His mind raced, he was exactly like that rich man, he had many wives, yet, he wanted something that was not for him, so he used devious ways to attain it. Sweat beaded his forehead, as he stood there looking back at the prophet, he couldn't move a muscle. The prophet had exposed in a clear, crystal voice the king's most dreadful, hidden sin as he stood in the very center of his royal courtroom, he stood there without fear, filled with the courage and strength from the almighty Yahweh, while all the king's subjects looked between the prophet and the king in great confusion. The prophet continued mercilessly:

"This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave you your master's house to you, and your master's wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.'

"This is what the Lord says: 'Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.'"

Sorrow, fear and regret gripped the countenance of the king, he slowly sat down on his throne and covered his face with his hand. He began to weep loudly, the dam was finally forced open, and ironically he felt relief.

"I have sinned against the Lord!" he moaned loudly, as pools of tears fell from his eyes down to his cheeks.

The prophet strode towards the king, his own face registered sorrow and grief, tears also run down his cheeks, for the king's sorrow was also, his sorrow and grief. He rested his hand on his shoulder empathetically and he gently said,

"And the Lord has taken away your sin, but the son born to you will die, for you have shown utter contempt for the word of the Lord!"

IIIII

Right after the prophet left, an attendant run to him.

"My lord, your son is sick!"

The king got up from his throne and went with the attendant. He burst into the bedchamber of Bathsheba, she turned to him, tears running down from her eyes as she was holding their son in her arms. The king looked at his son, so innocent and helpless, struggling to breath, his skin was red from high fever, his tiny hands jolted about as he continued to fight for his life. Tears run down the king's face, he turned and strode out of the room and immediately burst into his music room. He tore his robe, put on a sackcloth and put ashes on top of his head, he laid on the cold, bare ground, his body curled with groaning and moaning.

 _For I know my transgressions,_ _  
_ _and my sin is always before me._ _  
_ _Against you, you only, have I sinned_ _  
_ _and done what is evil in your sight;_ _  
_ _so you are right in your verdict_ _  
_ _and justified when you judge._

"Yahweh, I have sinned against You, please, don't hold it against my son, punish me instead." The king begged Yahweh, day and night. He wept sorrowfully, he refused to eat and drink, even when the elders of the palace begged him.

During this time, the king turned from his begging to confession. His mind roamed about from begging, to confessing, to praising...

 _Have mercy on me, O God,_ _  
_ _according to your unfailing love;_ _  
_ _according to your great compassion_ _  
_ _blot out my transgressions._ _  
_ _Wash away all my iniquity_ _  
_ _and cleanse me from my sin._

He now knew his heart yearned to be with Yahweh, the emptiness he felt for almost a year, was a longing only Yahweh could fill. Unconfessed sin couldn't make him approach God and it had weighed him down, he became lost and empty, he easily got angry and irritated—like anyone who hadn't meditated on His Word, he had lost his compass, he had lost his light, he had lost his joy, he had lost his heart and he had lost his life. He had become an empty shell, a man lost and a man without a Shepherd.

 _Create in me a pure heart, O God,_ _  
_ _and renew a steadfast spirit within me._ _  
_ _Do not cast me from your presence_ _  
_ _or take your Holy Spirit from me._

 _Restore to me the joy of your salvation_ _  
_ _and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me._

He thought having the woman he desired would make him happy, but he now knew, it brought him nothing but sorrow, for anything attained by sin, only brought him pain and grief. His soul longed for Yahweh, for the longest time, he wanted to cast this burden of unconfessed sin to Him, he just couldn't and too ashamed to acknowledge to himself that he had done something so wicked, he had become the very man he detested. For so long, he despised those people who betrayed him, those who wished to harm him, those who wanted to destroy him; he had looked down on them, for their hearts wished nothing but wickedness, and what had happened to him? He plotted and schemed, as well, he had committed a grave sin, he committed sin with an innocent woman and he killed her righteous husband, who loved Yahweh with all his heart—he was no different than the pagan and uncircumcised he detested, he had become the very man he loathed.

 _When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long._

 _For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah_

 _Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD"- and you forgave the guilt of my sin._

He continued to beg, to moan and groan his heart's deepest request to Yahweh as he curled on the ground, dirt and grime all over him and his face smeared with tears. If only he could take the place of his son, his mind remembered his son's adorable face, so tiny, so helpless and so innocent. His son, who didn't know right from wrong yet, was about to die in his place, because he had sinned. Each and every time he thought of his sin, he burst out into another series of begging, mourning and remorse.

 _Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,_ _  
_ _O God of my salvation,_ _  
_ _and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness._ _  
_ _O Lord, open my lips,_ _  
_ _and my mouth will declare your praise._ _  
_ _For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;_ _  
_ _you will not be pleased with a burnt offering._

 _The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;_ _  
_ _a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise._

He was broken inside out, down to his very core. Yahweh exposed him for who he truly was, he had committed an unforgivable sin, he had despised the Word of Yahweh and he had brought shame to Yahweh's name. Yet, he knew with all his heart and soul, that he had been forgiven, Yahweh was full of mercy and grace, but He despised sin, therefore, there would be impending judgement for him, and he accepted that, he deserved it. He was now broken with complete sorrow and he truly regretted what he had done.

He heard whisperings outside his music room, he stood and threw open the door.

"Is the child dead?"

"Yes, he is dead, my Lord."

The king didn't waste time, he quickly went to his bedchamber, took a bath, put on lotion and he wore his royal garments. He strode to the House of the Lord to worship Yahweh, then back to the music room to write psalms and music, he had missed worshipping and praising his Lord, he began to pour out his heart to the only One who understood him and had forgiven his transgressions. He didn't deserve His forgiveness, and yet, He gave him the chance to approach Him again. He wrote down the outpour of the undeserved grace he experienced and compiled them into 2 different psalms. He was crying with love and passion to the only One who gave him joy, love and life as he kept writing, **for it was through life's most distressful times, the most beautiful of psalms had been written:**

 _Have mercy on me, O God,_ _  
_ _according to your unfailing love;_ _  
_ _according to your great compassion_ _  
_ _blot out my transgressions._ _  
_ _Wash away all my iniquity_ _  
_ _and cleanse me from my sin._

 _For I know my transgressions,_ _  
_ _and my sin is always before me._ _  
_ _Against you, you only, have I sinned_ _  
_ _and done what is evil in your sight;_ _  
_ _so you are right in your verdict_ _  
_ _and justified when you judge._ _  
_ _Surely I was sinful at birth,_ _  
_ _sinful from the time my mother conceived me._ _  
_ _Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;_ _  
_ _you taught me wisdom in that secret place._

 _Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;_ _  
_ _wash me, and I will be whiter than snow._

 _Let me hear joy and gladness;_ _  
_ _let the bones you have crushed rejoice._

 _Hide your face from my sins_ _  
_ _and blot out all my iniquity._

 _Create in me a pure heart, O God,_ _  
_ _and renew a steadfast spirit within me._ _  
_ _Do not cast me from your presence_ _  
_ _or take your Holy Spirit from me._

 _Restore to me the joy of your salvation_ _  
_ _and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me._

 _Then I will teach transgressors your ways,_ _  
_ _so that sinners will turn back to you._

 _Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,_ _  
_ _you who are God my Savior,_ _  
_ _and my tongue will sing of your righteousness._ _  
_ _Open my lips, Lord,_ _  
_ _and my mouth will declare your praise…_

He wept with joy as he could now finally do his heart's desire. He could sing, he could write music, he could write psalm and he could finally approach the One he'd been longing for. His heart was finally full. When he was done, he got up, went to his house and requested they set food before him. After he ate, his servants approached him and said,

"What is this that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while he was alive, but when he died, you arose and ate food?"

"While the child was alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, 'Who can tell _whether_ the Lord will be gracious to me, that the child may live?'But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me."

There was still one last thing he must do, he needed to confess to her everything and ask for her forgiveness.

IIIII

He knocked the door of Bathsheba's bedchamber and opened it, he heard her weeping and sniffling as she nestled on her bed and pillows. His heart went out to her, he knew he was the cause for bringing her such pain and grief. If only he had asked Yahweh for her, instead of attaining her through evil wiles. What he had done had brought much heartaches and he was regretting it so much now. He clenched his fists as he felt his own tears running down his cheeks. He knew from the beginning that Bathsheba was someone special to him, but he didn't align his desires to the will of Yahweh, he had let lust consumed him. He had forgotten that Yahweh was all powerful and could give him anything he desires, if only he didn't slacked off during that time, if only he was with his warriors fighting and leading them in the war. He strode to her bed and sat down on the edge, facing her.

"Bathsheba, I need to speak to you…"

Bathsheba sat up and looked at the king, his hands reached out to held her face, his thumbs brushed through her eyes.

"My lord?"

"Bathsheba, I am sorry for everything, for causing you so much pain." The king choked, but he continued, "I'm sorry for taking advantage of your innocence, for killing Uriah, he was a good man—a man who was even more righteous than myself…" at the mention of Uriah, the king, burst out crying with remorse, "I tried to force him to go home and sleep with you, but he wouldn't…" the king's body was jerking with complete grief and sorrow as he confessed to her how Uriah refused and slept at the servant quarters and how he wrote a note to Joab, commanding him to put him at the station where the battle was fiercest and withdrew, thus killing him through betrayal. "I have killed an innocent man! I have killed a man who had loved Yahweh with all his heart! Forgive me, Bathsheba, please forgive me for being a wicked man!" the king hands covered his face and tears dripped through his fingers down to his royal garments.

Bathsheba gaped at the king, the king who was a proud and powerful man, was now a broken man, and for him to confessed everything to her where he could choose not to divulge anything to her. She was surprised that he was truly a man after God's own heart, for he was a man who not only asked for forgiveness and had repented of his sins, but he was a man who chose to restore his relationship not only with Yahweh, but also, with her. This time, she knew he had come clean with her and her heart went out to him. Bathsheba stood and knelt on the ground, she placed her hands on the king's lap as he wept with complete remorse.

"I forgive you, my lord. Your burden, was also, my burden. I should have spoken up, I should have reasoned with you, but I stayed quiet. It was also my sin, my lord."

The king looked at her, she truly was an honorable and innocent woman of God. She not only forgave him, but also, carried his sorrows with him and she bore his guilt with him. He didn't deserve her, he held her hands and led her to stand up together with him, the king's hand went up to touch her cheek. She was so beautiful, not only outside but inside, as well. He would make amends, he would honor her as his queen and he would love her this time. His other arm went to the small of her back as he held her head up and closed in his lips on hers. He would treat her with the honor she deserves, he would be devoted to her.

IIIII

Prophet Nathan was about to go to bed, when the voice that he knew so well spoke, calling his name. At first, he jolted and presumed maybe it was another bad news, how the news 9 months ago had tore his heart to a million pieces, broken him and aged him. His smooth face with no lines, now wrinkled a little, for he bore the sorrow of the king's sin.

 _Nathan!_

"Speak, Lord, your servant is listening."

 _Send word to the king, a son was born to him through Bathsheba, and I, the Lord, love him. He shall be called, Jedidiah, for he was beloved of the Lord._

Tears run down the prophet's cheeks, he was weeping with joy for the king. Yahweh was indeed a gracious God, he had first killed the child of a union that was attained by sin, but now, he blessed the union and gave them another child, what was more, He love this child. He truly had cleansed the sins of the king and now, was showering him with blessings. The king had experienced Yahweh's grace when He had chosen him as the 2nd king of Israel, now he was about to experience another dawn of grace, grace that would reveal to all people that He could make something that deserved death into the dawn of His grace that began by loving that child.


End file.
